Picking the best pornstar of all time is a fool’s errand because everyone defines "best" differently. Are we talking about who moved the most DVDs back when people actually bought plastic discs? Or is it about the person who broke into the mainstream and made your grandma blush?
Maybe it’s just the person who has the most raw talent in front of a camera. Honestly, it’s a mess.
If you ask a historian, they’ll point to the 1970s. If you ask a 20-year-old on Twitter, they’ll name someone who started an OnlyFans last Tuesday. There isn't one single answer, but there are about five or six names that basically built the foundation of the modern adult industry. Without them, the business looks totally different.
The Cultural Titans: Jenna Jameson and the "Queen" Narrative
For a long time, there was Jenna Jameson, and then there was everyone else. She is the definitive answer for anyone who grew up in the late 90s and early 2000s. She wasn't just a performer; she was a brand.
Jenna did something most people in the industry fail at: she owned herself. She signed a massive deal with Vivid Entertainment and eventually launched ClubJenna. This wasn't just about adult films. She was on The Howard Stern Show, she wrote a New York Times bestseller called How to Make Love Like a Porn Star, and she became a legitimate celebrity.
She proved you could be the best pornstar of all time by being a better businessperson than everyone else in the room. Even now, decades after her peak, her name is the one that sticks in the public consciousness. She took the stigma and turned it into a multi-million dollar empire.
But does "fame" mean "best"? That’s where the debate gets heated.
The Longevity King: Ron Jeremy and Prolificacy
You can’t talk about history without mentioning Ron Jeremy. It's impossible.
The guy has appeared in over 2,000 films. Think about that number for a second. It's staggering. He was the "Hedgehog," the unlikely star who didn't look like a Greek god but somehow became the face of the industry for forty years.
He was everywhere. Mainstream cameos, documentaries, reality TV. However, his legacy has become incredibly complicated in recent years. In 2020, he was hit with dozens of sexual assault charges. By 2023, he was declared incompetent to stand trial due to dementia and committed to a private residence/hospital.
His career is a masterclass in how to stay relevant for decades, but his personal life has essentially erased him from "best of" lists for many fans. You can't ignore the numbers, but you can't ignore the fallout either.
The Legends of the Silver Age: Nina Hartley and Lisa Ann
If we’re talking about pure craftsmanship and respect within the industry, Nina Hartley and Lisa Ann are usually the top names.
Nina Hartley is a legend. Period. She’s a feminist, an educator, and a performer who has been active since the mid-80s. She didn't just show up to work; she understood the psychology of sex. She’s often cited by other performers as the gold standard for professionalism.
Then you have Lisa Ann.
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Lisa Ann is a fascinating case because she had two distinct "lives" in the industry. She started in the 90s, retired, and then came back in the late 2000s to become the most famous "MILF" on the planet. Her parody of Sarah Palin in Who's Nailin' Paylin? was a cultural moment that transcended porn.
She has over 500 credits. She manages talent. She’s a sports radio host. She’s the blueprint for how to transition out of the industry while keeping your dignity and your bank account intact.
The One Who Changed Everything: Linda Lovelace
We have to go back to 1972. Deep Throat.
Before this movie, porn was something you watched in a basement. Deep Throat made it "chic." Linda Lovelace became an overnight sensation, and the film reportedly grossed hundreds of millions of dollars (though the math on that is notoriously fuzzy).
The tragedy here is that Linda later claimed she was coerced into the whole thing by her abusive husband. She became a vocal anti-pornography activist later in life.
So, is she the best pornstar of all time? In terms of impact, yes. She changed the legal and cultural landscape of America. But her story is a cautionary tale that the industry still hasn't fully reckoned with.
Why the Data Doesn't Always Help
You could look at awards like the AVN (Adult Video News) Hall of Fame. It’s the closest thing the industry has to the Oscars. But awards are often about who the studios like, not who the fans love.
- Rocco Siffredi: The "Italian Stallion." With a net worth of around $20 million, he’s one of the richest and most prolific male stars ever.
- John Holmes: The man who inspired Boogie Nights. He was the biggest star of the 70s, but his life ended in a spiral of drugs and the infamous Wonderland murders.
- Mia Khalifa: She was only in the industry for about three months. She only did a handful of scenes. Yet, she remains one of the most searched names in history.
How do you compare someone who worked for 30 years (like Peter North) to someone who went viral for 90 days? You can’t. It’s apples and oranges.
The Modern Shift: The Death of the "Star"
Today, the "best" isn't decided by a studio head at Vivid or Wicked. It’s decided by algorithms and subscription numbers.
People like Riley Reid or Angela White are the new titans. They don't need a middleman. They have millions of followers on social media and run their own production companies. They are more "famous" in a literal sense than most of the 80s legends ever were.
The industry has moved from "cinema" to "content." Because of that, the idea of a single "best" performer is dying. We live in a world of niches.
What Actually Makes Someone the Best?
If you're trying to settle this debate with your friends, you have to pick a metric.
- Cultural Impact: If the person didn't exist, would the industry be different? (Jenna Jameson, Linda Lovelace).
- Longevity: Can they stay relevant for more than five years? (Lisa Ann, Nina Hartley).
- Versatility: Can they act, direct, and produce? (Asa Akira, Manuel Ferrara).
- Raw Popularity: Who actually gets the clicks? (Mia Khalifa, Riley Reid).
The "best" is usually the person who sits at the intersection of all four.
If you want to dig deeper into the history of adult cinema, start by looking at the XRCO (X-Rated Critics Organization) Hall of Fame. They tend to be more "purist" about their selections than the big commercial award shows. It's a great way to find the performers who actually cared about the work, rather than just the fame.
Don't just stick to the most-viewed page on a tube site. Look for the performers who transitioned into directing or advocacy. That's where the real "best of all time" candidates usually hide.